Russia in Global Affairs

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RSCI Scopus

No. 1

2020 January/March

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Contents

Issue Information

Time and Food for Thought

Fyodor A. Lukyanov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-5-8

Approaches – Old and New

Russia’s Emergence as an International Conservative Power

Paul F. Robinson

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-10-37

Matthew Crosston

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-38-58

“Populists Are Now Lying Less Than ‘Systemic Politicians’”

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-59-78

Glossary

Nikolay A. Kosolapov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-80-84

G – Great Powerness

Andrei P. Tsygankov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-85-91

H – Hybrid War

Vassily B. Kashin

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-92-98

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-99-104

M – Messianism

Ivan A. Safranchuk

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-105-107

N – National Interest

Pavel A. Tsygankov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-108-112

P – Pragmatism

Maria Khodynskaya-Golenishcheva

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-113-116

S – Sovereignty

Alexander F. Filippov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-117-121

S – Strategic Stability

Dmitry V. Suslov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-122-128

Andrei A. Sushentsov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-129-132

Interview

“Russia and the rest of the world are heading into a storm”

Dominic Lieven, Alexander V. Solovyov

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-134-144

Relationships: Twists and Turns

U.S. Elections and Russia-U.S. Relations

Dmitry V. Trenin

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-146-156

Quo Vadis, Serbia?

Elena G. Ponomareva

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-158-179

European Values and the Chinese Factor

Natalia B. Pomozova

DOI: 10.31278/1810-6374-2020-18-1-180-196

Articles

Time and Food for Thought

What should one do if he is interested in world issues, but international life is basically coming to a standstill, trying to shy away from a pandemic? To us, the answer is obvious: read Russia in Global Affairs and use the intermission to think about what is happening on planet Earth.

Fyodor A. Lukyanov

Russia’s Emergence as an International Conservative Power

Since Vladimir Putin’s return to the presidency in 2012 it has become common to talk of a “conservative turn” in Russian politics. If Russia truly is emerging as a conservative international power, this could lead both Russia and the world in one of several different directions, depending on which version of conservatism comes to dominate.

Paul F. Robinson

Since populism has always, in the end, tended to be very conservative in cultural terms, both Putin and Trump are therefore tapping into populist traditions that are quite ancient, even if many American media outlets portray their efforts to be quite the opposite.

Matthew Crosston

“Populists Are Now Lying Less Than ‘Systemic Politicians’”

Is the topic of populism relevant to modern Russia? Can our conditions produce the phenomenon that is currently observed in Europe and the United States, and is generally spreading around the world? And is it not time to abandon the model based on political parties? These issues were dis-cussed at a roundtable held in the office of the Russia in Global Affairs journal and attended by Yuri Vasilyev, Gleb Kuznetsov, Vitaly Leibin and Oleg Kharkhordin. Fyodor Lukyanov, Rus-sia in Global Affairs editor-in-chief, moderated the discussion.

Equality is one of the key social values in the modern world. It featured prominently in the foreign policy of the former USSR and great importance is attached to it in post-Soviet Russia as well. Equality as a principle, value and purpose is mentioned in all of Russia’s fundamental documents —from the Constitution to concepts and strategies. But what are the real manifestations of equality in interstate relations?

Nikolay A. Kosolapov

G – Great Powerness

In an era of global instability and transition of power, those will survive who can adapt external and internal conditions to their needs. Markets, regional systems and military-political alliances are being redrawn worldwide. Modern great powerness should combine the protection of the world’s vital interests with active efforts to build a new world order and carry out necessary internal reforms.

Andrei P. Tsygankov

H – Hybrid War

Ascribing a hybrid strategy to a country can be viewed as part of efforts to isolate it. The purpose of such efforts is to render the opponent unable to defend its point of view. Any of the opponent’s at-tempts to explain its position, protect itself from accusations, and change the position of the other side can now be interpreted as disinformation and information attacks.

Vassily B. Kashin

The recent history of Russia saw a renaissance of the ideas of justice in relation to the world order. Only a few other foreign policy terms are mentioned probably as frequently in fundamental documents and in official speeches of modern Russia’s political leadership.

M – Messianism

Hardly anyone will disagree that Russia has never been an exclusively pragmatic power, driven only by practical interests. The feeling of a certain mission and a lofty goal has always been Russia’s inherent quality.

Ivan A. Safranchuk

N – National Interest

The realization of national interests, and of foreign policy in general, depends not only on the conscious, scientifically grounded formulation of the content of these interests, but also on the perception by state leaders of the “avails and needs of their homeland and the aspirations of other countries.”

Pavel A. Tsygankov

P – Pragmatism

Pragmatism is one of the fundamental principles of Russia’s foreign policy. Although this term is somewhat abstract, its content is quite concrete. The 2016 Foreign Policy Concept of the Russian Federation envisages that diplomats’ efforts should be focused on creating favorable external condi-tions for the country’s sustainable internal development.

Maria Khodynskaya-Golenishcheva

S – Sovereignty

The living body is what matters. The bodies make up a population, a nation, citizenry that in most modern countries have been declared the bearers of sovereignty and the inalienable source of power.

Alexander F. Filippov

S – Strategic Stability

The world has been changing so dramatically lately that even the Russian approach to strategic stability, characteristic of the period after the collapse of the USSR, and its understanding adopted in 1990 are rapidly becoming obsolete. As non-nuclear weapons acquire strategic properties and the line between war and peace becomes increasingly vague, the very nature of the threat of nuclear war is changing fundamentally: its outbreak becomes much more likely due to the escalation of a non-nuclear conflict than to an unexpected nuclear attack.

Dmitry V. Suslov

Russia has extensive historical experience of using force and diplomacy, which makes its strategic culture one of the most fruitful of all. The Russian elites have a large reserve of determination. They are able to mobilize resources to achieve foreign policy goals. Apparently, the strategy that stems from these qualities works best at a time when the international order is crumbling down and anar-chy is rising.

Andrei A. Sushentsov

“Russia and the rest of the world are heading into a storm”

Russia and the rest of the world are heading into a storm as dangerous as that of the first half of the 20th century and maybe even more so. But history—especially the history of the last three hundred years—is a very inadequate guide either to the challenges Russia faces or how to meet them. Sur-vival seems likely to be the key issue. By Dominic Lieven

Dominic Lieven, Alexander V. Solovyov

U.S. Elections and Russia-U.S. Relations

In recent decades Russia has been too focused on the United States. Moscow initially had a strong desire to unite with it in friendship and harmony, but very soon it developed an equally strong urge to take revenge for its loss in the Cold War. Russian leaders and elites hopelessly expected that the United States would understand their problems and do the impossible—recognize Russia as an equal partner. On the eve of the third decade of the 21st century Russians should arm themselves with patience, set their eyes on the domestic affairs.

Dmitry V. Trenin

Quo Vadis, Serbia?

In the current situation, a multi-vector policy—smart balancing between three centers (EU-NATO, Russia, and China)—may open up opportunities for Serbia to exert political agency on the international stage in the near term.

Elena G. Ponomareva

European Values and the Chinese Factor

The liberal values lying at the core of the European continent’s integration into the European Union (EU) are being put to the test by new factors, particularly the consistent and all-around strengthening of China. Europe’s attitude towards this new global “center of power” and, in particular, its Belt and Road Initiative, increasingly demonstrates the fragility of the existing system of values in EU countries, and its declining effectiveness.

Natalia B. Pomozova